M&A Deal Summary

Francisco Partners Acquires BARBRI

On March 31, 2021, private equity firm Francisco Partners acquired education company BARBRI from Leeds Equity Partners

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Francisco Partners’ 4th transaction in the Education sector.
  • This is Francisco Partners’ 99th transaction in the United States.
  • This is Francisco Partners’ 6th transaction in Texas.

M&A Deal Summary
Date 2021-03-31
Target BARBRI
Sector Education
Buyer(s) Francisco Partners
Sellers(s) Leeds Equity Partners
Deal Type Secondary Buyout

Target

BARBRI

Dallas, Texas, United States
BARBRI, Inc. is a bar exam test preparation provider serving a majority of bar exam takers each year with an alumni base of over one million people. BARBRI offers a comprehensive suite of learning solutions for higher education institutions and law-related businesses which includes U.S. bar prep, curriculum, assessment, global license preparation, online program management, and professional development. BARBRI was founded in 1967 and is based in Dallas, Texas.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

Francisco Partners

San Francisco, California, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1999
PE ASSETS 45.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Focused
DESCRIPTION
Francisco Partners' headquarters in San Francisco, California.
Francisco Partners' headquarters in San Francisco, California.

Francisco Partners is a private equity firm focused exclusively on investments in technology and technology-enabled services. Specific areas of interest include semiconductors, capital equipment, electronics components, systems and manufacturing, IT services and business process outsourcing, communications, security and enterprise applications, and infrastructure software. Prospective investment situations include divisional buyouts, growth equity financings, acquisitions of private companies, sponsored mergers and acquisitions, and take-privates. Francisco Partners looks for opportunities where it can commit a minimum of $100 million per investment. Francisco Partners was formed in 1999 and is based in San Francisco, California.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 119 of 149
Sector (Education) 4 of 7
Type (Secondary Buyout) 18 of 24
State (Texas) 6 of 7
Country (United States) 99 of 124
Year (2021) 4 of 14
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2021-03-01 Drawbridge

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, United States

Drawbridge is a provider of cybersecurity software and solutions to the financial services industry. Drawbridge was founded in 2018 and is based in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2021-04-14 VitalSource

Raleigh, North Carolina, United States

VitalSource is a developer of learning and development resources for the digital age. VitalSource is an education technology solutions provider committed to helping partners create, deliver, and distribute affordable, accessible, and impactful learning experiences worldwide. As a recognized innovator in the digital course materials market, VitalSource is best known for partnering with more than 1,000 publishers and resellers to deliver extraordinary learning experiences to millions of active users globally– and today we’re also powering new, cutting-edge technologies designed to optimize teaching and learning for maximum results. VitalSource was founded in 1994 and is based in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Buy -

Seller(S) 1

SELLER

Leeds Equity Partners

New York, New York, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1993
PE ASSETS 3.3B USD
Size Large
Type Sector Focused
DESCRIPTION

Leeds Equity Partners is a specialist private equity firm that targets investments in middle-market companies operating in knowledge industries. Specific areas of interest include education (K-12, postsecondary, at-risk/special education, instruction materials, testing), training (corporate training, professional certification/continuing education, language training), and information/business services (b2b publishing, information databases/research, tradeshows/conferences, business process outsourcing, consulting, staffing, marketing). Leeds prefers investing in established companies that are leaders in their respective markets. Leeds Equity Partners was formed in 1993 and is based in New York, New York.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 19 of 21
Sector (Education) 7 of 7
Type (Secondary Buyout) 6 of 8
State (Texas) 4 of 4
Country (United States) 17 of 19
Year (2021) 1 of 2
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2020-07-07 iModules

Overland Park, Kansas, United States

iModules is an online Constituent Engagement Management provider for educational institutions. iModules' interconnected suite of modules transforms how institutions create relevant constituent experiences and achieve fundraising success through web content management, marketing communications, online giving, event management, e-commerce, and social media integration. iModules integrates data, content, and strategy to drive participation and financial growth while increasing operational efficiency. iModules was founded in 1999 and is based in Overland Park, Kansas.

Sell -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2021-04-30 OptionMetrics

New York, New York, United States

OptionMetrics is a provider of historical options and implied volatility data, OptionMetrics distributes its IvyDB databases, futures options, Signed Volume and Borrow Rate data to leading portfolio managers, traders, and quantitative researchers at 300+ corporate and academic institutions worldwide to construct and test investment strategies, perform empirical research, and assess risk. OptionMetrics is based in New York, New York.

Buy -
Mergr

Product

Company

Legal